This invention relates to a bending device, and a control method thereof, for bending an elongate material by moving a bending jig having a clearance opening formed therein for passing the elongate material.
A heretofore known bending device, as disclosed in the Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. 1-154824, supplies an elongate material in the axial direction of the material, and comprises a positioning jig having a clearance opening formed therein for passing the elongate material, fixed to a device body, and a bending jig arranged at a position to which the material is supplied from the positioning jig. In this bending device, the bending jig is supported to move linearly to both vertical and horizontal directions orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of material, and the material is bent into a required shape by being moved on a plane orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of material.
However, such a conventional bending device necessitates, for example, a vertical motion mechanism provided with a pair of guide rails for supporting the bending jig slidably to the vertical direction, and a horizontal motion mechanism provided with a pair of guide rails for supporting the vertical motion mechanism slidably to the horizontal direction. Consequently, a constitution of the bending device has been complex and the device itself has been large.
An object of the present invention is to provide a bending device, and a control method thereof, which is simply organized and can bend the material by moving a bending jig having a clearance opening formed therein for passing an elongate material.
To attain this and other objects, the present invention provides a bending device comprising a positioning jig, a bending jig and a rotating member. The positioning jig has a clearance opening formed therein for passing an elongate material, and is fixed to a device body. The bending jig also has a clearance opening formed therein for passing the elongate material, and is arranged at a position to which the material is supplied from the positioning jig. The rotating member allows the bending jig to rotate on and along a spherical surface having the center on the material passing through the positioning jig.
According to such a constitution, since the bending jig moves on and along the spherical surface, the material passed from the positioning jig is supplied to the bending jig with its supply direction changed, and then bending is performed. As a result, there is no need to provide a vertical motion mechanism having a pair of guide rails for supporting the bending jig slidably to the vertical direction and a horizontal motion mechanism having a pair of guide rails for supporting the vertical motion mechanism slidably to the horizontal direction. Accordingly, a simple constitution of the bending device is made possible and a compact bending device is realized.
It is advantageous if part of the rotating member is formed into a spherical shell which is held slidably between a pair of spherical convex and concave members both fixed to the device body, and the positioning jig is attached to the spherical convex member.
It is also advantageous if the rotating member is rotated by means of at least three linear drive mechanisms. Drive mechanisms using servo motors or hydraulic cylinders can be adopted as the linear drive mechanisms.
Moreover, it is advantageous, if a portion of the spherical convex and concave members is cut off.
The bending device constituted as such can prevent the bent material passed from the bending jig from interfering with the rotating member and the spherical convex and concave members.